North Carolina State University Athletics
Simmons Goes No. 15 to New Orleans
6/28/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
June 28, 2006
By Tony Haynes
As of Wednesday night, Cedric Simmons became the answer to at least one trivia question: Who's the first NBA player from the small Brunswick County North Carolina town of Supply? The New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets hope the former NC State center will supply them with some frontcourt punch in the near future. The 6-9 Simmons, who will play forward in the NBA, had a lifelong dream come true when the Hornets made him the 15th pick in Wednesday's NBA Draft.
After averaging 11.8 points and 6.3 rebounds in his sophomore season with the Wolfpack, Simmons announced that he would test the NBA waters as an underclassman. At first, his decision raised some eyebrows given the fact that his second-year numbers - while much improved - were hardly eye-popping.
But with his quick off the floor athleticism, long wingspan and improving face-up game, Simmons became a draft sleeper with a series of impressive pre-draft workouts for coaches, scouts and player personnel directors.
"When I first put my name in, they said I could be a first rounder," Simmons said. "I thought I could have gone a little higher."
Along with his scoring and rebounding numbers, Simmons blocked 80 shots in 2005-06, a figure that led the Wolfpack and ranked second only to Duke's Shelden Williams in the ACC.
After his sophomore campaign, Simmons thought long and hard about his future before deciding to make himself available for the draft.
"It didn't happen so fast," he said. "Me and my parents were undecided and there were a lot of uncertainties. It took us about three weeks."
Simmons' selection marked the second straight year in which an NC State player has been drafted in the first round. Last June, swingman Julius Hodge was taken No. 20 by the Denver Nuggets.
